Acting Spoiled and Arrogant [Rebirth] - Chapter 3

The balcony window of Zuo Xian’s apartment faced the entrance of the residential complex at a slight angle.

Her family had chosen a good location; the natural lighting was excellent, and there were no other buildings blocking the morning sun. Because of this, as she stood by the window and watched Lu Xingxian walk toward the gate alone—without even opening an umbrella—Zuo Xian’s heart turned as cold as the winter air outside.

She returned to her bedroom in a state of absolute despair. She wondered what on earth she had been thinking. A teenager could be excused for being immature, but she had been nineteen at this time in her past life—could she really claim ignorance?

She was simply brain-dead!

Zuo Xian pointed an angry finger at her reflection in the mirror and bared her teeth in frustration. Only after slamming her makeup brush down did she finally feel a bit of relief.

Then, she turned on the lights, pulled herself together, and began meticulously caring for her skin. She was determined to leave an exceptionally good impression when she met Lu Xingxian the next day.

That night, after finally finishing her beauty routine, Zuo Xian pulled out her old-fashioned smartphone, which she hadn’t used in many years. It took a moment to get used to it, but fortunately, her layout hadn’t changed. This was a time before WeChat dominated everything; most communication was still handled via SMS and phone calls.

Almost subconsciously, she tapped the message icon in the bottom right corner. Sure enough, she saw her exchange with Lu Xingxian.

Zuo Xian: Axian, are you free on the 28th? I’d like to take you out for a meal.

Lu Xingxian: Okay.

Though it was just two short sentences, she held the phone and read them over and over.

Immediately after that text, Lu Xingxian had called to confirm the time and place. It was obvious that she had other things to do the next day, yet for Zuo Xian’s sake, she had cleared her schedule entirely.

Zuo Xian waited until her phone was fully charged before rolling over, switching from her numb side to the other. she opened her digital memo to take a look.

Yigui Mansion, 12:00 PM sharp. Talk to Axian about breaking the engagement.

She silently deleted the second half of the sentence.

Zuo Xian’s heart skipped a beat. She checked the time; it was nearing midnight. She took a few deep breaths and finally closed her eyes.

Because her mind was racing, Zuo Xian didn’t sleep very soundly that night.

The next day, the moment the first ray of morning light peeked through the gap in the curtains and hit her face, Zuo Xian snapped her eyes open. The clock was nearing 8:00 AM. Zuo Xian yawned, and once she was fully awake, she jumped out of bed and began getting ready.

However, the weather was not on her side. Just as she was about to head out, she realized it had started to rain. The rain felt icy—a mix of rain and snow.

The wind was biting. To look her best today, she hadn’t dressed very warmly. Nevertheless, Zuo Xian gritted her teeth, wrapped her trench coat tightly around her, and refused to go back and change.

She did, however, turn back to grab an umbrella. She noticed Lu Xingxian’s umbrella was still by the door, along with the items brought over yesterday that she hadn’t had time to unpack. Zuo Xian took one last look, steeled herself, and hurried out into the wind.

Yigui Mansion was considered a high-end restaurant. There were private rooms on the second floor, and Zuo Xian had booked a quiet spot up there.

At this point in time, she had only just stepped into the entertainment industry, barely having found her footing. However, Lu Xingxian was already incredibly famous, meaning she had to be very cautious whenever she went out.

When Zuo Xian hurried into the private room, she found someone already waiting.

It was Lu Xingxian.

She was standing by the window with her back to the door. The window was cracked open slightly, so despite the heater being on, the room wasn’t too hot.

The rain outside had let up. By noon, the sky had even begun to clear. Standing against the light, Zuo Xian noticed that Lu Xingxian’s hands were pale from the cold, and there were even faint water stains on her clothes.

“Axian…” Zuo Xian called out hesitantly, as if afraid of startling her.

Lu Xingxian seemed to snap out of a trance. She turned around, and upon seeing it was Zuo Xian, she quickly closed the window. She scanned Zuo Xian’s outfit, looking as if she wanted to say something, but she simply pursed her lips and gave a small smile.

Zuo Xian’s heart ached even more.

She could tell that Lu Xingxian had put effort into her appearance for today’s meeting. At that moment, Zuo Xian couldn’t help but think of the Lu Xingxian from her past life. Lu Xingxian had put her heart into every single meeting they had, yet Zuo Xian had rewarded that devotion by stabbing her right in the heart.

Zuo Xian pursed her lips and asked, “How long have you been here?”

As she spoke, she set her umbrella aside. With the window closed, the room quickly warmed up. She took off her coat and instinctively rubbed her hands together before pouring tea for both of them.

“Not long,” Lu Xingxian smiled.

Zuo Xian took a small sip, moistening her lips. Only then did her mouth start to feel warm again. Winter was truly unfriendly to girls; between the lipstick and balm, her lips felt like they were being sealed shut, especially with the wind and rain outside. She had been worried her lips might freeze.

Lu Xingxian observed her carefully before asking with a smile, “Shall we order?”

Zuo Xian’s hand paused, her heart thumping.

If this were the usual Lu Xingxian, she would be asking what Zuo Xian wanted to eat, rather than asking a question that sounded like… like she expected the meal to end at any moment.

Zuo Xian looked up and said firmly, “Yes! I haven’t eaten all morning. I spent the whole time doing my makeup…”

It was strange. Perhaps because she was suddenly nine years younger, looking at that face in the mirror—full of vitality and collagen—she had actually felt a bit clumsy while applying her makeup this morning.

She couldn’t even get her eyelid tape on right! She had nearly irritated her eyelids into swelling, which was honestly quite embarrassing.

Startled by Zuo Xian’s unexpected tone, a flicker of surprise crossed Lu Xingxian’s face. She recovered quickly, however, and pressed the service bell on the table.

Zuo Xian had booked a small room, but it still featured a standard four-person square table with two side tables against the wall. Lu Xingxian took the initiative to sit in the innermost seat by the window, while Zuo Xian happened to sit by the door. The two sat facing each other.

Throughout the meal, Zuo Xian was the one constantly looking for topics to discuss, all while worrying about saying the wrong thing. Lu Xingxian mostly just went along with whatever she said, and the meal proceeded smoothly enough.

It wasn’t until Zuo Xian was physically incapable of eating another bite that she reluctantly set down her chopsticks.

Lu Xingxian followed suit. Zuo Xian paused and asked cautiously, “Um, Axian… are you finished?”

The woman across from her nodded. She clasped her hands on the table and pursed her lips. “Xianxian, did you have something you wanted to tell me?”

Zuo Xian: “…”

Her face turned red with the effort of holding it in before she blurted out, “Yes! I… I think… I think that since we’ve finished eating, we should find something else to do!”

Lu Xingxian blinked in surprise.

“It’s… it’s good for… for digestion!” Zuo Xian stammered out the rest of her sentence.

She immediately covered her face again. Where did the script I memorized yesterday go?!

This is so embarrassing!